E Gates UK airports – who has access…. post BREXIT…

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Viewing 11 posts - 16 through 26 (of 26 total)

  • Chris in Makati
    Participant

    [postquote quote=1087421]

    My daughter has dual British and Filipino nationality. She uses her UK passport to enter and leave the UK and her Filipino passport to enter and leave the Philippines. When travelling to any other country she normally uses her UK passport, except for a small number of countries (mostly ASEAN) where it’s advantageous to use her Philippines passport.

    She’s been doing that for years and it’s never been a problem. Not sure why you would need to do it any other way.


    Cedric_Statherby
    Participant

    [postquote quote=1087890]

    I can vouch for this. I used to carry two passports, and once tried to leave Dubai and made the mistake of presenting the “wrong” passport – ie not the one my entry stamp was in. The border officer refused to let me through, saying that he could not give me an exit stamp as there was no entry stamp to cancel … and he could not let me through without giving me a stamp. It all became on one level rather surreal, with him telling me to my face (standing physically right there in front of him) “But you are not here, you are not in Dubai, so you cannot leave”.

    Nor did producing the other passport, the one with the entry stamp in it, mollify him much, as I was now apparently committing the even worse crime of trying to retain an uncancelled entry stamp and therefore enabling me to effect a future illegal entry.

    Eventually he called over a superior and between them they agreed to let me through, very pointedly cancelling the stamp rather heavily in the second passport and writing something in Arabic against it. But the whole matter was a rather fraught 10 minutes or so.


    penultimate
    Participant

    In 2019 the UK expanded the countries that passport holders could use E gates to Australia, Canada, Japan, New Zealand, Singapore, South Korea and United States. There was no reciprocal requirement. This also replaced the requirement for passport holders from these countries to apply for Registered Traveler status to be able to use the E gates. The UK required no reciprocal arrangements. I assume the UK added these countries to make the country more attractive to visit or to save costs on Border Force personnel required to automatically screen and vet all passengers from countries that the UK considered low risk.

    Previously it was only EU countries, EEA countries and Registered Travelers. I assume the UK continues to allow EU countries to use the E gates because the system is in place to do so and for same reasons they decided to add the non-EU countries in 2019.

    I include a link to the gov.uk webpage with the news release when the program was expanded in 2019.


    Johnhighlander
    Participant

    I am also confused why EU passport holders san use our E gates but we cannot use theirs. And as a holder of a single passport it seems like as on a number of other matters, we have come of worse!! Thanks BJ & MG! I cannot abide queues!


    traveldoc
    Participant

    Certainly what I plan to do. Both passports are valid so no reason why not.


    agsteele
    Participant

    [postquote quote=1087648]

    That used to be my policy too… But in these days of PNR records being passed in advance of arrival it is now more or less obligatory to embark with the same passport that you have provided to the airline which will, in turn, pass that information to the airports of transit and final destination. I was once caught out at Addis Ababa for this. Fortunately there was a photo record of a previous visit and they were able to identify me and I was allowed entry.


    SimonS1
    Participant

    [quote quote=1088637]That used to be my policy too… But in these days of PNR records being passed in advance of arrival it is now more or less obligatory to embark with the same passport that you have provided to the airline which will, in turn, pass that information to the airports of transit and final destination. I was once caught out at Addis Ababa for this. Fortunately there was a photo record of a previous visit and they were able to identify me and I was allowed entry.[/quote]

    I routinely do it with 2 uk passports. Never been stopped. I try to get all the exotic stamps in one so I have a clean one for Europe.

    Also the exotic one is two passports together, it won’t work the egates due to the chips conflicting.


    Ralph
    Participant

    What are the regualtions regarding Ex-Pats? UK Passport Holders living in EU Countries………………


    Cedric_Statherby
    Participant

    [postquote quote=1088832]

    Probably, given the way that the position of ex-pats has in general largely been ignored by the UK government, they are left in limbo, not allowed to live in either their home country or their adopted one, not allowed to travel between the two, and most certainly not allowed to eat a ham sandwich while they try to do so. Or indeed have eaten one in the 24 hours before trying this border crossing – you have no idea how dangerous the microbes in your English gut might be for the EU’s plumbing system …


    CathayLoyalist2
    Participant

    Cedric_Statherby, I live in Spain and I cannot agree that the UK Government has ignored ex-pats. Specifically your comment “not allowed to live in either their home country or their adopted one ” is inaccurate. We get access to regular information from The British Embassy, there have been frequent update meetings on a variety of pertinent subjects i.e driving licences. healthcare , the global GHIC, residency etc. Now where you live the communication maybe different but thus far we have been kept well informed.


    Cedric_Statherby
    Participant

    [postquote quote=1088836]

    My comment was, I confess, a little tongue in cheek. But I am delighted to hear that things are better in Spain, and in Portugal the position is not dissimilar. Both countries have large numbers of Brits living there and clearly both embassies are fully on the ball. Hats off to them!

    Alas the situation is not so good elsewhere in the EU and relatives of mine in Luxembourg (which also has a large number of UK ex-pats and which one might expect also to be aware of the issues and the need for communications) tell me that they have been almost totally left in the dark and are wilfully ignored when they try to seek information. It is even, they say, easier to go to the UK embassy in Brussels for information – and no-one in Luxembourg ever likes to admit that anything in Belgium is better!

Viewing 11 posts - 16 through 26 (of 26 total)
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